Ripples
by HappyCookiie
Summary: Daryl watched as the single drop of water fell to the hard barren ground, soaked up instantly into the thirsty earth... He watched as she fell to the ground, a bullet lodged in her brain. Just a single drop she was, fragile yes, but every drop of water leaves ripples.


**Author's Corner**

This short fic was inspired by the mid-season finale of season five 'Coda', after by heart was quite literally _CRUSHED_ into tiny pieces. Of course there will be spoilers if you haven't watched up to that episode so if you haven't, turn back now! You've been warned.

Anyways, after having my soul ripped out after the bullet shot through Beth's head and ended her, I am both heartbroken and extremely furious. Killing such a well-developed, likeable and relatable character was a bad move on the writers' part, especially considering that she was my FAVOURITE CHARACTER. Plus now Bethyl can never come true so now us fans can only dream :( But it's times like this in the world of the media where if a beloved character dies, we fans do the only things we can to remember them... create fan art and works of fiction. So here's my contribution in memory of Beth Greene.

**Characters: **Daryl Dixon/Beth Greene.

**Themes: **Tragedy/Romance/Angst/Horror.

**Summary: **Daryl watched as the single drop of water fell to the hard barren ground, soaked up instantly into the thirsty earth... He watched as _she_ fell to the ground, a bullet lodged in her brain. Just a single drop she was, fragile yes, but every drop of water leaves ripples.

**Disclaimer: **The Walking Dead does not belong to me, because if it did then Beth definitely would not have died, especially in such a dumb and undignified way.

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><p><strong>- RIPPLES -<strong>

A one-shot dedicated to Beth Greene

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He heard the firing of the gunshot. Then saw the blood. And then, her body, falling lifeless to the floor. Everything around him stopped as he stared and tried to absorb the scene before him. He heard nothing... Just the eerie silent fuzzing bouncing off his eardrums. Saw nothing... Just her fallen form only a few feet away from him, lying in a pool of deep red.

Everything after that seemed to blur. The uncomfortable murmuring of the other residents of the hospital facility, Rick and the others trying to contain their sorrow, and him reaching down and scooping up her frail body into his arms, her head cradled against his firm chest. She sagged in his hold, like a broken doll, motionless as he carried her out after the rest of the group, hot tears burning in his eyes.

_"I know you look at me and see just another dead girl!"_

He shook his head. No. Now wasn't the time to think about things like that, to remember all those things she said. It was stupid, pointless... weak. Daryl wasn't weak. Just like she wasn't. Beth Greene was strong. Optimistic, caring, and fragile. She hadn't wanted this, and she hadn't deserved it.

The way Maggie's face fell as she laid eyes upon his approaching form, her sister cradled in his arms, her eyes filled with tears and she fell to her knees. She knelt, crying out in desperation and sheer loss, hands cupping her mouth as Glenn knelt beside her and tried to comfort her. "No!" she would sob occasionally, as if her persistent denial would change the fact that her sister was dead. She was gone, and there was nothing she or anyone could do about it. Gone...

_"I'll be gone someday."_

_"Stop."_

_"I will!"_

Daryl lowered his gaze down to the girl in his arms, took in her vulnerable appearance as the blood seeped down her face from the bullet hole. He lifted his hand and wiped away some of the crimson liquid gently, allowing his fingers to linger over her soft cheek, still warm and rosy... but growing cold. Gone. That's what she was. But she wasn't just gone this time, he couldn't just find her again. This time... she was gone for good.

_"You're gonna miss me so bad when I'm gone Daryl Dixon."_

It was in that moment that the tears spilled down Daryl's cheeks, hot and thick, and his heart fell. Why... did she have to be right about this? Out of all the beautiful things she said and did... why _this_? All the compassion she showed, all the kindness she shared, all the humanity. What in God's name had the girl done to deserve such a shitty fate!? Anger. That's what Daryl felt. Raw anger and failure to protect the person that mattered most. Failure to save that one drop of water from being soaked into the thirsty earth... He had failed her. This wasn't like a kid's video game where you would just hit restart and try again. This was reality. This, he couldn't take back.

But... every drop of water leaves ripples. And Beth Greene would not be forgotten. Not by Rick, Maggie, Carl... and especially not _him. _She would live on. In him. She would be remembered. Hell... how could she be _forgotten_? She was a survivor, a sliver of hope, a light in the darkness, the goodness to the hatred. She was his Beth.

_"There are still good people Daryl."_

_"I don't think the good ones survive."_

Leaning down and planting a single kiss on her forehead, Daryl sighed and lowered his eyelids. "...They fucking don't." he murmured against her hair, breathing in her sweet scent for one last time, before she was gone forever. Forever. He hated that word. Just like he hated goodbyes. Just like Beth hated goodbyes... At least this way... she hadn't had to say the word.

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End file.
